The Type "I" rifles were the result of Hitler trying to unite the wideapread Axis nations and boost the Italian economy to help his friend Mussolini. He persuaded the Japanese to order rifles from Italy, though the Japanese claimed they had a more than adequate supply of their own rifles and much preferred them.
Anyway, a deal was cut and 60,000 rifles were made, split among three manufacturers, the Royal Army Arsenal at Gardone (50%), the National Arms factory at Brescia, and P. Beretta at Gardone (each 25%). All the barrels were made at Terni. Production began in 1938 and ended in 1939. The caliber is 6.5 Japanese, but the rifles are not Arisakas; they are a mixture of the Carcano action and a Mauser type magazine, loaded with the standard Japanese clip. One pecuilarity the Japanese insisted on was the use of a two piece buttstock, which they felt was stronger than the normal buttstock used by most other nations. The Italian glue was apparently not as good as the Japanese, since several Type I rifles I have seen were coming apart at that seam.
Reportedly, once received in Japan, all the Type "I" rifles were turned over to the Imperial Japanese Navy, and at least some were used in combat by Naval landing forces (sometimes incorrectly called "Japanese Marines" by Americans, though Japan had no separate Marine Corps as the Americans and British did).
Many I have seen were in good shape, indicating seizure from depots rather than capture in combat, though I have seen some that obviously had seen heavy use and lack of proper care. No need to worry about ground chrysanthemums, though; the Type "I" never had a "mum" or any other identification except the serial number and a few factory inspection marks.
AFAIK, "Type I" is an American collectors' term; I have not been able to determine what the Japanese called them.
Jim